BUCYRUS—In a special meeting on Thursday, the Bucyrus City Council addressed the city’s impending financial challenges.
City Auditor Kali Lewis provided the council with a comprehensive analysis of how fire and safety forces’ costs impact the city budget. Lewis reported that safety forces now consume 82% of the general fund, a significant increase from 62% in 2019. She emphasized that the budget is stretched to its limits.
The recently implemented 1/4% tax levy is in its early stages, making it challenging to project additional revenues.
While the levy brought in an extra $49,159.14 in August, the city still requires an additional $545,000 to cover expenses for the remainder of 2023.
Lewis informed the council that the remaining AARPA funds of $424,898.25 could potentially be transferred to the general fund, leaving an additional $120,101.75 needed to fund the fire department’s personnel services through the end of the year. She noted that relying on AARPA funds for the next year is not a viable option, urging the council to take action now to prevent potential financial shortfalls.
If the levy revenue remains consistent, it is projected to bring in $528,000. However, Lewis cautioned that if the police (excluding dispatchers) receive a similar increase as the fire department in their current negotiations, an additional $163,300 from the levy will be required. This would leave an estimated $32,640 from the increase, leaving no room for new hires, cruisers, retirement buyouts, or equipment.
Lewis presented several options to address the issue:
- Layoffs would not be favorable due to the city’s self-funded status and the associated costs.
- Revisiting the tax credit, but this would require waiting until after the tax season for accurate revenue totals.
- Considering an additional levy, though, it may be unfair to ask citizens for more money with only one month of data for projections.
- Rescinding staffing requirements for safety forces and amending legislation regarding administrative control and staffing levels.
Lewis also reviewed EMS and ambulance revenues, totaling $695,111.03, and projected salary and pension costs without benefits to be $2,059,822.10 by year-end.
During the public participation portion of the meeting, Bucyrus Fire Chief Chad Schwemley expressed that the numbers presented by Lewis were not discussed with him beforehand.
Outgoing councilman Dan Wirebaugh motioned to completely revoke the out-of-town tax credit. This comes after council members advised dissatisfied out-of-town workers that retaining their credit depended on supporting the safety forces levy. Wirebaugh aims to resolve the matter before his council term ends, stating, “Lots of us are leaving office. I don’t want to leave the city in dire straits. Let the next council decide if they want to reinstate it.”
The council voted to refer the issue back to the committee for revocation. The complete list of revenues and projections can be found on Documents On Demand.